Government invests £17m in retrofitting

UK: Eighty-seven social housing projects across the UK are set to benefit from a share of £17m of government funding to test low carbon building technology, Housing Minister John Healey announced.

The programme, entitled 'Retrofit for the Future', is being hailed as the first of its kind in the UK, and will see social housing units across the country retrofitted with new, innovative technologies.

Understanding and implementing best practice retrofitting is key to meeting the Government's CO2 reduction target of 80% by 2050. The results of the projects will be shared to help show how the UK‚s current housing stock could be made more energy efficient.

In the initial design phase, over 190 organisations – including housing associations, architects and construction companies - received up to £20 000 each to carry out full feasibility studies and devise innovative proposals. From these proposals, 87 have now been awarded proof of concept development contracts to carry out retrofits on current social houses.

The retrofit prototypes will each receive an average of £142 000 to demonstrate deep cuts in carbon emissions and exemplar energy efficient measures in UK social housing.

The level of funding is specifically designed to stimulate the implementation of innovative, proof of concept demonstrator houses that may offer cost effective solutions for wider role out across the UK.

Each demonstrator house will be carefully evaluated by the Energy Saving Trust for at least two years and the potential for lower cost implementation in volume across the remaining UK social housing stock assessed.

More detail on the implementation of energy efficient measures for social housing UK-wide will follow in the Government's Household Energy Management Strategy, which is due to be released soon.

MKM Building Supplies has reported outstanding growth in 2014/15. Revenue at the Hull-based group rose by 18% in the 12 months to September 2015, reaching £252m, up from £213m in the same period of the previous year. EBITDA and operating profit climbed further, both rising 27 per cent to £17.1m and £15.9m respectively.

The Builders’ Merchant Federation (BMF) is set to recruit at least 20 Ambassadors from the ranks of its members to support a national youth recruitment campaign, Builders Merchants Careers. They will help to promote the opportunities offered by the industry to students and young job seekers throughout the country.